


Möbius Strip of the Brain

by alexhasaproblem



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee, VIXX
Genre: Asexual Character, College, M/M, Slow Build, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-24
Packaged: 2019-07-12 22:22:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16004510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexhasaproblem/pseuds/alexhasaproblem
Summary: "If I have to hear shitty ass rap music blaring from your room while I'm trying to take a nap, I am going to throw your ass through the wall. And knowing you're using fucking Soundcloud doesn't help that at all."





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> so uhh this is the first work i've ever seriously posted on here so please me easy on me, I'm fragile klajfkjdas

At 22:00 on a Monday night, the dorms at the university were quieter than usual. Most of the (debatably) responsible students were sleeping, while others crammed for tests. Not much could be heard, besides the occasional sob from a distressed freshman who failed to study for a test they had at 08:00 the next morning. There were some noises of a more mature nature, but those were ignored for the sake of sanity. Strangely enough, it could almost be described as peaceful. The hall was miraculously empty, with the floor actually clean (maybe even the most surprising part), and the lights turned on very low.

At 22:01, Han Sanghyuk, a mere freshman, had the pleasure of seeing his upperclassmen roommate’s dick for the third time that day. At 22:02, Lee Jaehwan was running down the dormitory hallway to avoid being beaten by yet another issue of Naruto.

At 22:03, Jung Taekwoon was lulled to sleep in the chair next to his project partner by the sound of a Beethoven samples. Kim Wonshik didn’t realise the fellow Music Composition major was no longer helping him when he asked him a question at 22:57. At that moment, Wonshik decided the darkened studio was perfect for a 6 hour nap.

At 23:00, Cha Hakyeon closed the local coffee shop, while arguing with his friend about whether or not kissing someone for money would be considered a form of prostitution. At 23:02, Lee Hongbin decided to abruptly leave the conversation in order to flee to his dorm to play Overwatch for the next hour or so. At 23:25, he found Sanghyuk dragging a naked, sleeping Jaehwan down the dorm by his ankle.

At 23:35, after finally getting Jaehwan into his bed, Sanghyuk decided he fucking hated college.


	2. weeb ass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i dont think the prologue did anything justice so uh. chapter one

When Wonshik’s alarm goes off at 06:10, his first thought was regarding the pain in his back. The second was regarding the fact that he wasn’t even in his dorm room, and had once again fallen asleep in his university’s recording studio.

With a small sigh, he pushes himself off the ridiculously high-backed chair. The lights were still turned off in the studio, and the computer screen still glowed with the image of an unsaved clip. He saves the clip to his flash drive, before yanking it out of the ancient PC desktop. To his left, he hears a small whine, and he finally realises Taekwoon had fallen asleep with him.

Taekwoon says nothing as he pushes himself up and stretches with a soft yawn. He looks at Wonshik with an expression of great job, dumbass. Wonshik shrugs half-heartedly as he goes over to the door, gently opening it so the light wouldn’t be completely disorienting. Taekwoon follows him out, before turning the opposite direction, heading for his dorm. Wonshik continus his own way, squinting in the fluorescent lights. It was too fucking bright for 6:17 in the morning.

***

Sanghyuk finally lets out a groan at the sound of the basic alarm sound blaring from his phone. He had tried just ignoring it for some time, but after 30 seconds it was just annoying. He pushed himself onto his forearm and (far more aggressively than needed) pressed the dismissal button. The time read 06:30, which he (dramatically) decides is mocking him.

As he pulls together an outfit consisting of whatever he grabbed out of his drawer, he smells the distinct scent of coffee. Maybe, just perhaps, Jaehwan has made coffee for the both of them as a peace offering after the previous night? It was a nice thought to have as he shoved his laptop into his bag.

However, when opens his bedroom door and steps into the kitchen, Jaehwan sipped a coffee, leaning against the counter, right beside the Keurig Hakyeon had gifted them with. The bastard had already put the boxes of K-Cups back into the cupboard. Sanghyuk sighs as he puts his bag on the counter and reaches over Jaehwan for the handle to the slightly broken cupboard. Jaehwan sniffs, sticks his head up, and saunters away. Sanghyuk rolls his eyes at the antics.

“You should be a fucking drama major,” he comments, watching the Keurig splutter the bitter liquid into a “Best Dad Ever” mug he had found in the dollar bin at the grocery shop close to campus. He hears Jaehwan scoff at his comment.

“And you should be in the anime club, yet I don’t see your ass attending any of those weeb ass meetings.” Sanghyuk glares over at him.

“Just because I like Naruto doesn’t mean I’m a total weeb,” he bites back, dumping a bunch of sugar into his coffee. He checks his phone for the time; 06:35.

“Sanghyuk. You own all 72 issues of Naruto, all fourteen volumes of One Punch Man, and I hear you listening to anime at least 4 nights a week -- and I know for a damn fact none of the voices are from Naruto.” Jaehwan grabs his bag off of the chair they had shoved in the corner of the cramped kitchen. “Later, Weebass,” and with that, he slams the door shut.

“Extra mother fucker,” Sanghyuk grumbles to himself before drinking his coffee as fast as he could manage. As soon as he finishes it, he hears the knock on his door. 06:36; right on schedule. He grabs his bag and opens the door for Hakyeon. The elder was somehow smiling, despite the early as hell time.

Hakyeon walked with Sanghyuk to his building every morning, despite the lack of need for it. He claimed it was because both Sanghyuk’s dorm and the Law building were both in the same way as the Creative Arts side of campus, but Sanghyuk was 90% sure it was because he always hoped to see Jaehwan. It was amusing to him how Hakyeon thought he could hide his crush so well; What a fool.

***

 **태민이 (06:56):**   _class starts soon, where the hell are you?_

 **원식아 (06:56):**   _omw_

Wonshik curses to himself as he speeds up, his legs straining in his skinny jeans. He usually only wears them to clubs and outings, as he knows how great he looks in them, but as he was rushing in his room, he grabbed what he had nearby. He firmly decides to never wear them to classes again. As this thought comes to him, he jerks out of the way as a tall as hell kid rushes past him, almost knocking him into the wall. _Freshmen_.

He rushes into the classroom just as the clock turns to 07:00, and he quickly takes a seat next to his friends while Professor Cho sends him a reproachful glare. Taemin gives him a Look, but doesn’t risk anything as Professor Cho starts rambling about something relating to algebra. Wonshik respected the professor, but hated the required class. As a musician and producer, when would he need anything he’d learn in Advanced Multivariable Calculus?

Sometimes, he regrets going to college. But he wanted to make his mother proud, so he was determined to graduate. He scribbled a note at top of his notes to call his mother later, which he sees Taemin grin slightly at. Wonshik shrugs half-heartedly.

***

“Okay, so, I got the GSA approved!” Hakyeon starts, once he and Sanghyuk had gotten out of the dorms. Hakyeon always waited until at least then ever since having a shoe thrown at him by a really, really tired, and even grumpier senior for talking too loudly in the morning.

“This is where you demand I attend the first meeting, isn’t it?” Sanghyuk asks, taking a sip out of his coffee mug. In his tired haze, he completely forgot to put it in a to-go cup, but considering how tired and hungover his Legal Research and Writing professor usually is, he figured he wouldn’t really care.

“씨발, you’re such a brat.” Hakyeon rolls his eyes, grabbing his bag angrily. “It's not like I was going to force you, I was just going to invite you.” Sanghyuk gives him a pointed look, to which Hakyeon mumbled, “and if you said no I would cry.”

Sanghyuk sighs, then asks, “When’s the first meeting?” Hakyeon jumps in the air and claps happily, which even Sanghyuk, in his tired and grumpy state, even smiled at.

“Friday!”

“Hakyeon, that’s tomorrow.” Hakyeon stares at Sanghyuk for a moment, stopping his walking. The realization must have hit him, as the color drained from his face, and he began to curse in Korean under his breath. Feeling pity, Sanghyuk sighs as he offers to help Hakyeon set up after his last class tomorrow.

“Hyukkie, I love you more than life itself,” Hakyeon says ecstatically, throwing his arms around Sanghyuk’s shoulders. “I’ll send you the address sometime tonight, but right now we better hurry, since your class starts in 3 minutes.”

Sanghyuk checks his phone for the time, which flashes 06:57, curses, and sprints towards the maths building, leaving Hakyeon behind him. He didn’t have time to think about whether or not agreeing to help his most flamboyant friend set up for his meeting, nor did he have time to realize he wasn’t alone in the hallway until he was nearly running up on a fellow running college student. He didn’t bother to apologize as he heard the kid scoff.

He slowed down to be able to casually walk through the door of his class as the clock strikes 07:00. The professor didn’t even glance at the door as he gave out instructions for reading, as if they were all a bunch of fucking elementary children. Sanghyuk slumps down in a separated-from-most-students seat as he pulls out his textbook. He sends out a quick prayer for the class to go quickly, as if there was anything out there to listen to him.


	3. white people chinese food

“Shik-ah!” Wonshik’s mother chirps happily as soon as the call is connected, the Korean taking him back for a moment. “How’s my lovely son doing? Have you been eating well? Did you get enough sleep last night?”

Wonshik smiles, leaning back onto the brick wall of the building. Her concern always made him feel so… loved. “Ah, I’ve been well. Hakyeon always pesters me to eat, though I still need to get a handle on my sleep schedule. I didn’t call to talk about me, though. How have things been back at home?”

“So selfless, I raised you well. Things have been lovely; spring in Seoul is always so pretty in the parks.” His mother continues to ramble on the happenings back at home, which he listens to quietly, with only a few reactions to prove he was listening. Eventually, her tone changes. “Have you been coping with college in America well? I know it's quite different from here.”

He sighs, debating on telling her the truth or not; he didn’t want to worry her. “I’ve been doing well with it! My English is improving very much, and I’m keeping up with my social and educational time.” He can tell this pleases his mother, and after a few more exchanges, he hangs up.

“You know, you shouldn’t lie to your mother.” Wonshik whirls to his left, his brain taking a moment to process the words; English, again. Taemin and Jongin stand a few feet in front of him, Jongin leaning on the wall, while Taemin faces Wonshik with his arms crossed. “You rent out the studios more often than all your peers, from what I’ve heard. And we all know you sleep in there more often than you do in your own room.”

“Is this an intervention? Have you been interrogating my classmates?” He attempts to joke, but he knows Taemin is about to call his ass out. Jongin still has his mother’s number from last semester, and Wonshik knows he’ll give it to Taemin in a second.

“No, just a reminder that we care about your workaholic ass. We don’t want to see you in the hospital again.” Taemin uncrosses his arms, frowning at Wonshik. He sighs, remembering the entire week he was forced to stay in the hospital after passing out from not taking care of himself. It took both himself and Jongin to convince his mother she didn’t need to fly all the way to California to check on him herself.

“I’ll work on taking better care of myself, I promise. I just need to get more sleep.”

“I’ll remember that,” Jongin incepts, before Taemin could reply. “Now, let's go get something to eat. I’m hungry."

It’s 08:15, but neither Taemin or Wonshik protest, especially since the offer meant Jongin had to pay for everything.

***

Sanghyuk doesn’t have another class until 14:30, so he heads back to his dorm, as per his usual. Jaehwan was at his Graphic Art Studies class, so Sanghyuk knows he’ll have some much needed time to relax in his room.

As soon as he opens the door, however, his cell phone rings. He answers it without checking, figuring it’d be Jaehwan sneaking into the bathroom during class to ask Sanghyuk some dumbass question. “What?”

“That is no way to speak to your father.” The familiar, rough, clearly-speaking-Korean voice barks at him. Sanghyuk freezes, before slowly and carefully shutting the door. He wishes he could just hang up.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were my friend; he calls at this time on occasion.”

“Well, you were mistaken.” His father replies, his tone cold. “How are your grades? Have you joined any extracurriculars that won’t damage your studies?”

“My grades are well, as always. I am still looking into extracurriculars.” He puts as much venom as he could manage into the word without making it look too obvious.

“Look harder. I have to go.” His father abruptly ends the call, and Sanghyuk slams his phone on the table.

Damn him, and damn his mother too. They never care about how he’s doing emotionally, mentally, or even physically. Only his grades matter to them, and they act as if giving him money makes up for it. Sanghyuk sees the PayPal notification pop up on his lockscreen, as if on a cue. He wants to yell, or punch a wall. He hates them, he really does. How dare they ruin his day this goddamn early?

Sanghyuk decides to just go to bed, setting an alarm for 14:00. Sleeping is better than being awake.

***

“In no way is Chinese food made by white people any good.” Taemin says, staring at the tray of Mandarin chicken in front of him, as if it was going to lurch out and attack him. Wonshik sees a pasty blonde girl glare over at them.

“Careful,” he hisses, leaning towards Taemin. “I saw a m’fucker with a ‘Proudly White’ shirt heading into a classroom Monday. Those bitches aren’t afraid to attack.” He sees Jongin nod, before taking a scoop of the Mandarin chicken.

“Braver than any U.S. Marine…” Taemin says to him, before piling rice onto his own plate. Wonshik rolls his eyes; Taemin spent too much time on Tumblr and Twitter, and keeps forgetting to watch what he says. It’s the usual, but Wonshik worries for his friend.

Jongin goes to find them a table, his plate already assembled. Wonshik sort of envies his focused, introverted friend sometimes. He puts together a plate of rice and a couple mini muffins, not quite hungry for many of the breakfast options still displayed. He then goes to find Jongin, who is sitting in a small booth by the windows.

Jongin smiles up at him, but doesn’t say anything as he takes another bite of rice. Taemin joins them soon, and they eat without talking. The atmosphere is slightly tense, and it makes Wonshik uncomfortable. He sits awkwardly after he finishes eating, not wanting to speak.

“식이!” A familiar voice calls out, and Wonshik turns his head to look over. Hakyeon walks briskly his way, a smile covering his face. Wonshik inhales deeply, not knowing if he’s ready to deal with that loud bitch this early. Hakyeon pulls a chair to the front of the table. “Jongin, Taemin, I believe my business will suit both of you as well.” Wonshik catches Jongin and Taemin sharing a glance.

“So,” Hakyeon begins, “I got the GSA approved!” Wonshik gives a small, appreciative, miniature applause. Hakyeon beams happily. “But I need help setting up for it, and getting the word out about the meeting.”

“When is it?” Jongin asks, before quickly polishing off his remaining rice. Hakyeon gives a small, apologetic, smile.

“4:30...tomorrow?” Taemin slams his empty glass of water to the table, Jongin drops the fork he was twiddling in his hands, and Wonshik chokes on the water he was drinking. The three of them stare at Hakyeon, until he starts to squirm. “Listen, I didn’t know until Sanghyuk told me.”

“I don’t know who that is, but I’m glad someone is keeping you held together.” Wonshik quips, his eyes rolling a bit. “What time are you setting up tomorrow?”

“I’m starting at 2:30, since that’s when Sanghyuk’s CCJP class is over.”

“I’ll be there, I don’t have classes tomorrow.”

“Plus,” Jongin interjects, “he’s in desperate need for a boyfriend.”

Hakyeon and Taemin break into laughter, while Wonshik splutters helplessly. Finally, he manages to spit out, “I would also accept a girlfriend or partner.”

“Not helping your case, babe.” Taemin giggles lightly. Wonshik checks his phone for the time (and to hide his increasingly redder face), and bolts to his feet. “My Songwriting class is in 15 minutes, I gotta blast.” With that, he runs out of the cafeteria, dodging tired adults the whole way.

***

By the time Sanghyuk falls asleep, he has a 30 minute nap, before his alarm began to scream. He didn’t bother to fix himself up, nor change out of his sweatpants. His next class was just General Psychology, and he was passing the class with flying colors. Sometimes, he thinks as he adjusts his bag and grabs a bottle of water out of the fridge, it pays off to have multiple mental illnesses that you have to cope with yourself.

Just as he was ready to leave, Jaehwan stumbles out of his room, sleep evident on his features.

“Hey,” he mumbles, his voice low from the lack of usage. “I’m sorry for coming out of the bathroom naked all the time, I keep forgetting I have a roommate. I know its not cool.” He pouts as he leans on his door-frame.

The apology takes Sanghyuk by surprise, but he replies, “Its okay. I’m sorry that I keep beating you with issues of Naruto.” He restrains from laughing.

Jaehwan smiles sleepily, waves, and shuts the door has he goes back into his room. Sanghyuk leaves the dorm room, wondering why the hell Jaehwan randomly apologized for something he does all the time, or who the hell made him apologize.

***

Taekwoon squints his eyes at Wonshik as the younger sits beside him, making Wonshik look away awkwardly. This elder was almost as motherly as Hakyeon, but much more quiet (and deadly) about it. There were still 5 minutes until class started, so Wonshik knew he was in for _something_.

“You better not be sleeping in the studio tonight.” Taekwoon said in his quiet voice, a firm finality to his tone. “It’s not comfortable, and considering how tired I am, I know it was not a satisfactory rest.”

Wonshik nods, resisting the urge to call him Dad. If his friend group was a family, Hakyeon would be the overbearing mother, Taekwoon would be the subtly caring father, and Taemin and Jongin would be the family friends that everyone pretended were actually related. Not that Wonshik has thought of his friend group in familial positions. Of course he hadn’t, that would be weird (he’s totally thought about it).

“Do you have the project? Maybe we could work on some editorial things; Kwon never plans a full lesson anyways.” Wonshik appreciates that Taekwoon never hounds him for anything, either. He pulls his laptop out of the bag he got at American Eagle for free (with a purchase of $40 or more, of course), and opens it on the twin desk he and Taekwoon share.

It opens to his Soundcloud page, proving he must have fallen asleep the last time he used it. The upload page was open, with nothing dragged in yet. He looks over and sees Taekwoon observing the page with interest.

“You haven’t posted anything in a while, unless I missed your last piece.” He quietly comments, looking to meet Wonshik’s eyes. “Yet you’re always in the studio… what’s up with that?” He patiently waits for an answer. There's still two minutes remaining until Kwon would usually walk in.

“I… I haven’t been nearly as inspired lately. The lyrics just won’t come to me. In the last week, I’ve managed two lines. Two, 형. It's pathetic, and I can’t figure out what to do about it.”

“Well,” Taekwoon begins, while opening a new tab on Wonshik’s laptop, “Your songs are mostly inspired by love, heartbreak, or successes and failures. Sounds like you either need to get laid, or get your ass kicked.”

Wonshik is about to snipe back, but Kwon rushes into the room, speaking as soon as he crosses the door’s threshold. Taekwoon smirks at Wonshik, and Wonshik immediately makes a plan to demolish his elder as soon as he can manage.

***

 **성가신 형 (19:34):** _Conference Room 1 first floor humanities building_

 **성가신 형 (19:35):** _tysm for this 혀끼_

**혀기 (19:41):** _u owe me_


End file.
